Record Breaker: Red Sox Beat Yankees in 19 Innings
At long last, it ended.
For the Red Sox, the historic 19-inning affair ended in a win. For the Yankees, it simply ended.
In the marathon matchup of longtime rivals, the Red Sox pulled out a 6-5 win at Yankee Stadium in the early hours of Saturday morning. Officially clocked at 6 hours and 49 minutes, the game was the longest by time in Red Sox history. Amid the squandered leads and game-tying home runs, a 16-minute delay caused by a section of lights going out during the 12th inning extended the affair.
[fragment number=0]
After the Yankees erased a pair of Boston leads in extra innings, Mookie Betts drove in Xander Bogaerts with a sacrifice fly for the winning run in the top of the 19th.
[fragment number=1][fragment number=2]
In the bottom of the frame, knuckleballer Steven Wright finally closed out the victory by inducing a double play ball off the bat of Garrett Jones.
“I guess we’re happy,’’ David Ortiz said after the game’s long-awaited conclusion, via Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe. “We’re happier than they are. I know that.’’
The Red Sox had multiple opportunities to end the game earlier, but could not close out the Yankees. Boston reliever Edward Mujica took the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning with a 3-2 lead but could not convert the team’s first save opportunity of the season. After retiring the first two batters he faced, Mujica allowed a game-tying home run to Yankees third baseman Chase Headley. Ortiz staked the Sox to a 4-3 lead in the top of the 16th inning, but Mark Teixeira answered with a game-tying solo shot off Wright in the bottom half of the inning. In the 18th inning, Pablo Sandoval drove in Dustin Pedroia to give Boston a 5-4 lead. Again, the Yankees answered with an equalizing run when Carlos Beltran drove in pinch-runner John Murphy. For the final time, the Red Sox took a lead in the 19th inning. For the first time, they held on to it.
“It’s a testament to the will and the resiliency of this team,’’ Red Sox manager John Farrell said of the win, via The Associated Press.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com